Daughter of Superman

Social Fears

Conner knocked twice on Madine's door, waiting for her answer before going in. Since he was paying attention, he heard her stop pacing, and then sighing, probably figuring out he wasn't going to let go.

She opened the door and step aside so he could get in, and then closed it behind them.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She nodded and sat on her bed. Conner decided to sit on the chair in front of her desk, pushing it til he was looking straight at Madine.

"It doesn't look so." he said after her confirmation. "Did I said something wrong?"

"No! No, not at all." she was quick to answer. "It's just... complicated."

She seemed really disturbed and he didn't know how to tell her that she could trust him, with anything. Just like she was his safe haven for almost everything since he came live with them three days ago, he wanted to be the same for her.

Even with so little time, he had a profound and meaningful bond with her, that much he knew.

"You can talk to me, you know." he decided. "I may be new to this world, but... I want to help you. Just like you've been helping me."

She looked at him with wide eyes for a second, and then smiled largely, patting the place in the bed beside her, and he took it as an invitation, sitting there.

"I always wanted to be a hero, when I was a kid. Seeing dad flying all around, in his big red cape... For me, there wasn't nothing better than that. And then I tried saving someone."

She grew quiet for awhile, and Conner decided to stay quiet too. Madine put her head to rest on his shoulder, and they only breathed silently for a few minutes, while Madine organized her thoughts.

"There was a fire on a building next to our old apartment, when I was eight. Dad was out in a League meeting, and I barely had any powers, just was a little stronger than most. There was a little girl, my age I guess... She was screaming, terrified, and she was on the fifth floor. The firemen could reach her, but I thought I could, since I was a little more durable, so I ran into the building, through the stairs full of flames, and then reached the girl."

She took another pause, and Conner stayed quiet. He could hear her heart racing, a little nervous, and her breathing was erratic.

"The girl was terrified, but I convinced her to come with me. I tried to protect her from the flames, and I managed to get into the first floor with her before something happened. A burning wall fell on us, on the girl... And I couldn't lift it. The firemen got there, and dad right after, but by then she was severely burned. When the paramedics took the girl, dad turned to me, and when he noticed it was me he almost had a heart attack right then. I think the only reason he composed himself in that moment was because I couldn't stop crying."

She sighed, stretching her muscles and laying down on the bed, and Conner turned so he could keep looking at her as she finished the story.

"That's when I knew I couldn't be a hero. It wasn't for me."

"But it wasn't your fault. You were a child."

"Dad told me that, too." she smiled. "The girl was okay a few weeks later, it's not by guilt I don't want to be superhero. I want to help people, but in other ways."

She got up and look him straight in the eyes.

"I'm studying to go to med school. I want to be a doctor, and help people with their problems. With my powers, I can see things that even machines can't."

"I'm not sure I get why you don't want to be out there like your father."

She smiled, then.

"No one does. But you don't have to. Just... The kind of heroes you guys are... I can't be that."

Conner still didn't understand Madine's reasoning, but he decided to talk more about it after. For now, it was enough.

"That's why I'm going to school in July," she laughed a little. "We're having a little summer course for extra credits."

He smiled for her.

"I'm not sure I understand your reasons, but... I'm sure you be a hero no matter what you do."

She hugged him.

"Thanks, Con."

"You're welcome."

~.~

"I don't know if I can do this." Conner admitted, a little nervously.

It was Saturday, and Clark and Madine took him to the mall to buy the things he still needed in his room... and on his wardrobe. Later he would go with Clark to some place where Batman had called all the other heroes and the sidekicks: Robin, Aqualad and Kid Flash to tell them the 'sentence' after the events on Cadmus.

Honestly, Conner was more inclined to accept Batman's scolding than to face the crowd he was seeing right now.

"Of course you can!" Madine encouraged. "Remember your lessons?"

He did, but the little things he and Madine had discussed about social behavior the day before, suddenly didn't seemed enough.

"You gonna be fine, Conner." Clark said, smiling. "And we're right here."

"Come on, we don't have much time." Madine said, in between them, pushing them forward as she walked.

Clark laughed.

"Sweetie, we have 'til four!"

"It's not much!" she complained, which only made Clark laugh harder.

Conner decided that it was okay if he made a fool of himself, then. At least he was with his family.

With that in mind, he followed Madine through the mall, getting in and out of stores, in and out of clothes, without knowing for sure why he needed so many things, but it was making Madine extremely happy, so he endured.

In the end of the day, with his new clothes and things for his room, he was very happy that Madine insisted on this shopping day. Even if he had made a lot of social mistakes and embarrassed himself in more than one occasion, living like a normal person was getting easier and better each day.